


Mistletoe Isn’t Enough

by LadySerendipitous



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), F/M, Fluff, ML Secret Santa, POV Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Pre-Relationship, Secret Santa, post-reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-25
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-11 23:23:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9041030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadySerendipitous/pseuds/LadySerendipitous
Summary: Adrien and Marinette were friends.  Just friends. No matter what other people said. No matter how it looked. No matter how much Marinette wished people were right.
For Tumblr User feathersnow





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [feathersnow](https://archiveofourown.org/users/feathersnow/gifts).



Marinette woke up warm. Not that she didn't normally, but considering she didn't feel the weight of multiple blankets it was obvious what, or rather who, was generating the heat. Clutching her pillow she curled up a bit, enjoying not having to wake up in a panic like she did most school mornings.

“Morning Marinette,” his voice was soft as he greeted her. Marinette peeked open an eye to look over at Adrien, who was sitting up in her bed, with a book in hand. She smiled but didn’t say anything. It was too early for words. “I heard movement in the kitchen. I think your mother is finishing up making breakfast.”

So much for staying in bed, though at this point her mother probably wouldn’t blink an eye if Adrien came down stairs by himself. Still it would be impolite. Marinette stretched and yawned. How did they get to this point?

It had been several months now since Adrien and her had discovered each other’s identity. It had been a surprise of course, but it had strengthen their teamwork, their partnership and their friendship. Granted not everyone thought it was a friendship. Her parents were convinced they were dating and while Marinette wished that were the case, it simply wasn’t true. Adrien was the person she trusted most in the world, and by extension loved more than anyone else. It was too bad that he just saw her as a friend. As Chat Noir he would joke and banter and flirt with her on the battlefield and it was a great stress reliever to have that sort of playfulness. Most the time. At school, she had been one of his first friends that wasn’t pre-approved by his handlers. A rocky start that he smoothed over with his good nature. He just had no idea how much of an effect his kindness and vulnerability had on her starting that day.

“Good morning Mama,” Marinette called out as she descended the stairs from her room, Adrien following behind.

“Ah, good morning kids,” Sabine looked over, smiling widely and going over to give Marinette and Adrien both a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for leaving me a note last night so I made enough for breakfast by the way.”

Adrien shook his head even as he went over to the cupboard to pull out plates. “No, thank you for making breakfast.”

“Of course dear, but why did you come over so late?” While the question was reasonable, there was mischievous twinkle in Sabine’s eyes.

The thing was, often times Adrien and her did not plan on their little sleepovers. It had originally started after the reveal. There had been so much to talk about that it seemed pointless trying to patrol and get through all of things they wanted to discuss. So he would invite her over or she him. They would lay on whoever’s bed just talking until it became so late they could barely keep their eyes open. Adrien would try to leave her the bed to either sleep on his coach or her lounge chair, but she would insist he stay. It wasn't fair, she would point out, for him to be kicked out of his bed or for her to be a bad hostess and not let him sleep in hers. Both beds easily accommodated them after all. And so they got in the habit of sleeping beside each other.

That didn’t mean there were not times where Marinette wouldn’t look at his sleeping face and wonder how she got so lucky that Adrien Agreste was her partner, because even Ladybug couldn’t be that lucky, could she? Apparently she was though. They snuck out of each other’s rooms the first few times and then they finally threw caution to the wind. Maybe that’s why everyone just assumed they were dating now.

“I made the mistake of mentioning that we were baking Christmas cookies today,” Marinette said rolling her eyes, not realizing just how fond the smile on her lips were.

“Another helping hand will be nice,” Sabine said as she started dishing up the breakfast for them.

Later, when they had finished eating, when they volunteered to clean up the breakfast mess and then went and cleaned up themselves and got dressed for the day, they went down to the bakery. In hindsight Marinette should have seen it coming, but she didn't and so when her and Adrien went behind the counter all her father did was point above their heads. The lipstick her father was sporting suggested that it was not just for Adrien and her benefit. Still she resented the little green plant hanging from the ceiling, because really she would have loved to have kissed Adrien senseless, but that wasn't going to happen.

Instead Adrien got a very respectable mistletoe kiss on the cheek. She did it in all seriousness, looking him in the eye, then lifting herself on her toes even as he leaned down, and tilted her head to catch his cheek. He smiled at her as she lowered herself and she grinned back even as she heard the sound of disappointment from her mother, who was slightly behind her father, her phone up, likely to catch the moment. Marinette would bet the picture was suppose to go to Alya.

"So Adrien," her father came over putting an arm around Adrien's shoulders. If he was disappointed as well he was hiding it better than his wife. "Have you ever frosted cookies before?"

“Well,” Adrien started, stalling to come up with an answer.

“In that case you'll be in charge of the family cookies. Sabine and Marinette will get you set up,” Tom told Adrien patting him on the back. Adrien had a panicked look on his face, but her father looked at him with every confidence.  


For his first time frosting cookies, Adrien hadn’t done badly at all. Still he ended up with specks of frosting on his arms and even his face. Marinette snickered even as he was washing up. “Was your father serious that he was sending those cookies to your friends and family?”

“Well of course. Everyone is going to know it was you that frosted them too.” She couldn’t help giggling again as Adrien groaned. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. They’re going to taste just as good as the ones now in the display case.”

“But they’re not…” Adrien’s protest was stopped by Marinette pressing a finger upon his lips. He blinked at her in surprise then his face started to pinken.

Marinette felt herself flush as well. Damn this boy. They could be literally climbing over each other and not bat an eye, but this, him embarrassed by such a casual act by her gets her flustered? It wasn’t fair! “Um, yeah… they’re fine Adrien… trust me.”

He just nodded silently. At least he wasn’t going to try to argue with her, she wasn’t sure she had the wits for a verbal sparring match at the moment. Actually being verbal wasn’t something she wanted to do at all at the moment as she and Adrien looked at each other.

Then her phone rang!

“That’s Alya,” she needlessly informed Adrien as she pulled her phone out to answer it. The conversation was short, Alya informing her that Nino and her were already at the holiday bazaar and confirming they were still meeting in a half hours time.

By the time her conversation with her best friend was over, the awkward tension was gone. They casually made their way back to her room to retrieve their kwamis, who had been enjoying time alone in her room, and grabbed their coats before heading outside.

They walked outside in the cold, crisp, December air side by side. Marinette mentally took note of each and every time their hands brushed. She was hyper aware and she hated it. Usually she wasn’t so focused on everything Adrien. No, she usually wasn’t so affected by being hyper focused on Adrien. It was like that stupid little green plant had crept into her brain. It barely even counted as a kiss!

Meeting up with Nino and Alya elevated Marinette’s hamster wheel of thoughts. The four of them laughed and talked as they went from vendor to vendor, pointing out both the amazingly awesome and awesomely horrible. The afternoon progressed to the early evening as the winter sun waned. 

“Girl, what was with that kiss?” Alya asked as they separated from the boys to use the restroom.

The question made Marinette pause in her tracks, literally, other needs momentarily forgotten. “What kiss?”

“Yeah, that’s pretty much the problem. Your mother texted me the picture from the bakery,” Marinette felt her face heat up. She hadn’t been the least bit embarrassed at the time, but now! “What are you two waiting for?”

“Like I’m just going to make out with Adrien in front of my parents down in the bakery,” she said softly as she crossed her arms and started going through the door into the bathrooms.

“Do you make out with him at all?” Alya retorted.

“You know the answer to that question, so I don’t know why you’re asking.” Marinette chose a stall and closed the door. The problem was, while most people thought Adrien and her were dating, Alya knew better. On one hand having someone know that truth was a relief, but on the other hand Alya didn’t understand why they were not dating. Marinette would have loved to be able to confide in Alya. She could use her best friend’s advice and support, but she couldn’t know all the complications that was Adrien and Marinette, because she couldn’t know about Chat Noir and Ladybug. So in the end, Marinette had to suffer in silence and see her best friend confused, because Alya thought she knew what was going on and it made no sense.

Less than an hour later the group of friends went their separate ways to head home. Adrien walked her back to the bakery, and they paused outside the side door that would lead her to the stairs to the family apartment. Adrien grinned down at her as he had his bag of purchases slung over his shoulder. “Don’t you think it’s a purr-fect evening for a stroll later tonight?”

Marinette smirked, she couldn’t have helped it if she tried. “That sounds delightful.”

“Well then, til then,” he took her hand in his free one and kissed the back of her hand, like he had a hundred times before. She felt the heat spread from her cheeks and the back of her neck, but hopefully with the poor lighting he didn’t notice. Marinette didn’t want things to get screwed up. Yet, did she imagine that he looked like he had blushed himself? Could she really have caused Adrien Agreste to blush twice in one day?

She felt the sigh escape her lips after she closed the door, having waved to him until he had to turn to go around the corner. Could she dare to hope? Shaking her head she trotted up the stairs. It wasn’t going to do any good thinking about that now.

A happy family dinner and some time working on some gift projects proceeded Marinette calling out to Tikki, “Spots On.”

Up on the rooftops of Paris, Ladybug ran and jump. If she stopped she could have watched her own breath in the cold air, but she didn’t until she spotted her partner on a familiar rooftop. “Good evening My Lady.”

“Good evening to you Chat Noir,” she greeted back as he came up beside her. It was not a normal patrol night and she wasn’t going to treat it like one. Since it was Adrien’s idea though, it was time to see if he had any ideas. “So what did you want to do?”

“Well it was a beautiful clear day and I thought a little star gazing might be fun,” the black cat hero started even as he pointed up at the sky. Even in the City of Lights a few pinpoints of distant light could be seen in the night sky. “But then I came up with a better idea.”

She watched him go a few steps away and crouch down on the ground, then music started playing. “Could I have this dance?”

Ladybug, Hero of Paris, smiled brightly at her partner and offered her hand. “Just a fair warning, I don’t know how the dance.”

His cat eyes went wide even as he placed one of her hands on his shoulder and took her other one in his own hand, placing his other hand on her waist. He directed her to the steps at first, but this was Ladybug and Chat Noir and soon she needed no words, she followed his actions. After all this was not fancy dancing, just simple steps, or so he said. Still though it felt like they were alone. Just the two of them. Not just on the rooftop, but in the city, in the night.

The distance between them, which wasn’t much to start with, slowly shrunk, until Ladybug absently realized both her arms were around his neck, both his hands on her hips. They swayed to a song she recognized but could not name. The air between them was warm, even if the night air was more than a bit chilled.

She had been lost in his eyes for minutes, hours, it didn’t matter. Marinette and Adrien, Ladybug and Chat Noir. She whispered her wish before she could think to do otherwise. “I’d like to kiss you.”

“I’d like you to kiss me,” he told her in a husky tone that was inviting all on it’s own.

Ladybug and Chat Noir kissed on a rooftop, under a dark night sky, the lights of Paris a soft halo on their life, even as music, unheard, played on. The night was always theirs, but this night was the first night of them.


End file.
